Snowstorms and Babysitting
by Trapped in a MatchBox
Summary: In which Ryan brings his kids to the Precinct on a snow day. Castle offers to babysit. Ridiculous amount of fluff.


**A/N: This is ridiculously fluffy. Don't say I didn't warn you. But I was bored and felt like writing. This is what came out of it. I hope it doesn't suck.**

**Disclaimer: I wish Castle was mine. But alas, it is not.**

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**Snowstorms and Babysitting**

Kate yawned and tried to blink away any remnants of sleep. She had had a really bad case of insomnia the night before and had gotten less than two hours of sleep before rolling out of bed for another day at work. Thank God things were slow that day as she was seriously entertaining the thought of sneaking into the break room to take a nap.

Shaking her head to make herself more alert, she decided that she was way overdue for another cup of coffee. Castle wasn't there yet and she really wished he had already arrived, if only for the coffee he always seemed to provide.

That and the fact that she missed him.

He had been away for about a week to deal with the logistics of his third Nikki Heat novel making its debut on the big screen and she missed him terribly. Not that she would ever admit that to anyone, of course. She knew he had gotten back in town the night before, but she hadn't had a chance to talk to him yet.

Standing up, she tried to stifle another yawn, and made her way to the break room to make herself a cappuccino. With the warm mug now securely in her hands, she took a sip and felt that wonderful sensation of the caffeine spreading through her veins and warming her up. New York was going through yet another below freezing winter and they had gotten several inches of snow the night before. As much as she loved snow, she hadn't been able to enjoy the cold weather as much as she used to since she had been trapped in a freezer with Castle a couple of years back. Just thinking back to that moment made a shiver run through her body.

"Penny for your thoughts?" his voice brought her out of her reverie and she felt an involuntary smile tilt her lips up.

"Castle, hey."

She couldn't hide the evident happiness in her voice and felt a little embarrassed about it. She tried not to think too much into it. He was her best friend; it was okay to be happy to see him, right?

"Hey, yourself, KB." He walked in her direction and handed her a bear claw and her usual coffee. "What had you so deep in thought?" he asked and nudged her shoulder with his, leaning against the counter next to her.

"Nothing, really. Just all this snow… it brought back memories." She took a sip of the cup he had just given her. "How was LA?"

"Oh, you know. Boring. Lots of meetings. Wishing I could be here." He shrugged. "Did I miss anything exciting?"

"Not really. We closed two cases, but nothing Castle flavored." She grinned at him and he grinned back.

"Your life becomes incredibly dull when I'm not around, doesn't it?" he nudged her shoulder again and she was tempted to agree with his statement.

"In your dreams, Castle." She playfully hit the back of his head. He was about retort, when a small blur came running through the door.

"Uncle Castle!"

A little boy with striking blue eyes and a tuff of brown hair escaping from his dark blue hat threw himself at Castle and Kate stifled a laugh.

"Hey, little man. What are you doing here?" Castle picked him up and touched his nose, making the boy giggle. "And which one are you again?" he asked teasingly.

"I'm Aiden, Uncle Castle." He said with a 'duh' tone to his voice.

"Really, Castle, how can you still not tell them apart?" Kate shook her head with a smile and turned to the little boy in question. "Hi, there, AJ. Where's my hug?" she reached out her arms to him and Castle transferred the 4-year-old to her arms.

"Hi, Auntie Kate." He said shyly and tucked his face into the crook of her neck. It was no secret that Aiden was quite enamored with his Auntie Kate and the boys loved to tease her about that. "I missed you." He whispered in her ear and she held him tight to her body, placing a soft kiss on his flushed cheek.

"I missed you too, sweetie. How are you doing? And where's your brother?" she asked, adjusting him on her hip.

"I'm good. And Logan is talking to Uncle Javi out there." He reached out and touched her hair, squeezing a strand between his thumb and finger like he always loved to do.

"No school today?" she asked smiling at his actions and he shook his head.

"Snow day." He replied, settling back on the crook of her neck and sighing contently.

"How about a cup of hot cocoa, AJ?" she heard Castle ask next to her and the boy turned around in her arms to look at him.

"Okay." He said with a sleepy nod. It was still quite early and she knew they would probably take a nap soon.

"How about we go out there and see if Logan wants one too?" Kate suggested and looked at Castle. "You got this?" she asked and he nodded, leaning in to place a kiss on her hair.

She blinked, surprised and he smiled at her with a shrug.

"I just missed you." He told her and she felt the butterflies in her stomach flutter excitedly. She offered him a smile back, not quite sure what to say to that, and walked out of the break room with AJ held tight in her arms.

Making her way to the bullpen, she spotted Esposito playing catch with AJ's twin brother, Logan, and Ryan talking on his phone.

"Hey, Logan." She ruffled the boy's hair as she sat down on her chair with AJ on her lap.

"Hey, Aunt Kate." The small boy said, standing on his tip toe to kiss her cheek.

"I see he found you already." Esposito grinned at her and gestured to the small boy in her lap. "The first thing he asked about when he got here was where his Auntie Kate and Uncle Castle were."

"We just love each other very much, don't we, AJ?" she asked taking his hat off and fixed his messy light brown hair.

"Yup." The boy smiled proudly and Esposito rolled his eyes with a smile.

"You got him wrapped around your finger." He chuckled and Kate shrugged with a smile.

"I'm so sorry, guys." Ryan told them when he got off the phone. "Jenny had a meeting and our baby sitter is snowed in. I had no choice but to bring them with me."

"Don't worry, Kev. It'll probably be a slow day, anyway. We could use the distraction." Esposito reassured his partner, who collapsed onto his chair.

"I hope so." He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Those two together can be a handful."

"Yeah, don't worry, Ryan. We can help you out today. I missed playing with my little buddies, anyway." She placed a kiss on the top of AJ's head.

"Who ordered hot cocoa?" Castle approached them with two mugs in his hands and placed them on Kate's desk.

"We made them some hot cocoa. I hope that's okay, Ryan." Kate asked her friend.

"Yeah, sure. It'll be good for them after being outside. It's freezing." He agreed and Kate handed one of the mugs to AJ and the other to Logan.

"Blow on it, guys. It's really hot." She warned them and the boys nodded, doing as she said.

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The morning passed by uneventfully. Castle kept her supplied with coffee and filled her in on his trip to LA. AJ and Logan played together in the break room, with Ryan and Esposito taking turns to watch them. Kate looked at the couch in the break room wistfully, thinking that she would never get to take a nap now with the kids running around the precinct, so she settled for catching up on paperwork. When that was finished, she checked her e-mail and the news online.

Things were getting worse out there and she was relieved that she didn't have to face the elements today. Her happiness was short-lived, however, because they got called in to a murder scene right after lunch. Ryan was stressed about leaving his kids at the precinct, but Castle decided to sit this one out and volunteered to stay and watch the boys while they drove to the scene.

Kate lifted an eyebrow questioning silently if he was sure, but he just nodded and told her not to worry. He had raised Alexis by himself; two little boys couldn't be that difficult to handle for a couple of hours, right?

She didn't have to stay on the murder scene for long and soon delegated a couple of tasks to Ryan and Esposito, while she handled the interrogations at the precinct. She drove carefully back to the station as the snow fell heavily from the sky. When she parked her car in front of the Twelfth, it had turned into a full blown storm and she can barely see where she's going with the amount of snow blowing in the wind.

The temperature had dropped significantly and she ran into the building, shivering when the warmth hit her as she walked through the door. She stepped into the elevator and hit the homicide department floor button, hoping things went down alright with Castle and the kids.

When she walked into the bullpen and didn't see anyone, she immediately started to worry. As she made her way to the break room, she got increasingly concerned at how quiet everything was. Opening the door quietly, she finally found what she was looking for.

Castle was on the couch with Logan and AJ. They were all asleep.

She smiled at the scene and felt that tug at the pit of her stomach that longed to have that in her life. To build a family. With him. She knew she loved him; that much had been obvious to her for quite some time. But it felt like they had missed their chance and now, almost six years down the road, she honestly thought it was too late.

Shaking her head to dismiss those thoughts (they always made her sad because she knew they could have had something beautiful together) she fished her phone out of her pocket to take a picture.

She took a total of five different photos before he stirred. She watched in silence as he blinked and looked around, confused, until his gaze settled on her. A sleepy smile graced his lips.

"Kate." He said and she smiled, walking over to him.

"Hi." She said, gently picking up AJ and settling him next to her, his head on her lap. "Did you guys behave?" she asked with a glint of mischief in her eyes and he elbowed her.

"Yes, we did. I even got them to take a nap as you can see." He told her proudly. "Where are Ryan and Esposito?"

"Following up a lead. And before you ask, it seems to be a pretty straightforward case. Gunshot to the chest. History of violence on the husband."

"So… boring?"

"Yeah, pretty much." She sighed and rested her head on his shoulder. "I'm so tired." She whispered and felt him kiss the top of her head.

"Why don't you take a nap?" he suggested and she shook her head sleepily.

"I have a case, remember?" she said, but didn't move from her comfortable position.

"Then just take a break for ten minutes. Stay here with me and the boys." He said softly and she turned her head to look up at him. He smiled and kissed her nose gently.

"Okay." She agreed; the butterflies in her stomach trying to make a run for it.

At that moment, she made a decision. Taking a deep breath, she leaned in the rest of the way and touched his lips with hers hesitantly. She knew he was taken by surprise, but he soon kissed her back eagerly. He sucked on her bottom lip, before running his tongue across it, asking permission. She opened her mouth and allowed him in, savoring the feel of his tongue on hers for a few brief seconds.

Then she pulled away and watched him as he looked at her, eyebrow raised and lips swollen from her actions.

"Not that I'm complaining, but what was that for?" he asked, reaching out to tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear.

"Nothing." She offered him a small, shy smile. "Just for being here, I guess. I missed you." She confessed and rolled her eyes as she saw him beaming at her.

"I missed you too. You have no idea how much." He leaned in and captured her lips in a searing kiss again, eliciting a small moan from her. When they pulled apart, he showered her jaw, neck and lips with little kisses.

"Uncle Castle?" they heard Logan's sleepy voice coming from Castle's side.

"Go back to sleep, sweetie." Kate said, running a hand through his hair affectionately. "You too, AJ." She added when she saw the small boy looking up at her through sleepy eyes. They both nodded and settled more comfortably against her side and Castle's to fall back asleep.

"You're a natural at this." Castle commented after a few minutes in silence. Kate shrugged.

"I like kids." She rested her head on his shoulder again and sighed.

"Go on. Take a nap. I'll wake you." He encouraged her and she looked up at him.

"Ten minutes." She warned and he nodded, kissing her one more time. She smiled against his lips.

"You got it, KB."

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A couple of hours later, AJ heard his daddy's voice outside the break room and decided to go investigate. He sat up on the couch and looked, intrigued, at his Auntie Kate and his Uncle Castle as they slept soundly. Logan was already awake and raising his eyebrows at him, questioningly. He shrugged at his brother and gestured for him to follow him outside.

He saw his daddy, Uncle Javi and Aunt Lanie talking at his daddy's desk and walked in their direction.

"Hey, buddy." His daddy picked him up for a hug while Logan got a kiss and a hug from Aunt Lanie. "What were you two up to?"

"Sleeping." Logan answered for him with a yawn. "Uncle Castle and Aunt Beckett are still there."

"Hey, Daddy?" AJ asked and his father looked at him. "Are Uncle Castle and Auntie Kate boyfriend and girlfriend?" the question had been eating away at him since he saw them kissing earlier.

"Why do you ask, honey?" Aunt Lanie asked curiously.

"Because we saw them kissing." AJ said and turned to his brother, who nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, kissing like boyfriend and girlfriend." Logan added and all three adults stared at them with shocked expressions.

After they explained what they had seen, the boys led them to the break room where Castle and Beckett were still asleep, wrapped up around each other.

"Well, I guess they have some explaining to do." Lanie commented after snapping a few pictures. "But I have to say, it's about damn time."

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**Review? Pretty please?**


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